Kuwait's airspace reopened on April 23, 2026, according to the state news agency Kuna, after being closed for nearly two months following the outbreak of war. Commercial flights are scheduled to resume on Sunday, April 26, as part of a phased plan announced by Kuwait's civil aviation authority. The closure was extended multiple times due to drone strikes that damaged radar systems at Kuwait International Airport, which has been hit several times in recent weeks by attacks on Terminal 1, Terminal 2, and fuel storage tanks, according to multiple reports.
The war began on February 28, 2026, when the US and Israel launched surprise airstrikes on Iran, according to research citing four sources. The strikes killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran's supreme leader, and several senior military officials, including from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), as reported by multiple sources. The New York Times reported that the CIA provided intelligence on Khamenei's location to Israel. However, CNN cited two sources saying President Trump opposed an Israeli plan to kill Khamenei, while research from nine sources indicates the US offered defensive support to Israel but did not join offensive operations. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied any disagreement, stating in a press conference: "The report that the prime minister and the president of the United States had a disagreement is not true. The opposite is true." The strike on Khamenei occurred at around 09:40 local time, according to research from three sources, and the US and Israel had tracked his movements for months beforehand, as reported by nine sources.
Iran responded with missile and drone strikes against Israel and US bases, according to research from nine sources. The US and Israel struck more than 5,000 targets in Iran, according to Washington and Israel, while Iran says US and Israeli forces bombed nearly 10,000 civilian sites. The conflict caused surges in oil prices and global economic disruption, as reported by nine sources. The 12-Day War in June 2025 had ended with a US-brokered truce, according to research from three sources, but the 2026 escalation proved far more destructive.
Kuwait International Airport suffered significant damage during the conflict. National carrier Kuwait Airways and low-cost airline Jazeera Airways have been operating flights out of Dammam in Saudi Arabia, according to multiple reports. Both airlines will continue to operate some flights from Dammam while operations return to normal, as stated by the carriers. Kuwait Airways will resume operations to some 17 destinations, including London, Istanbul, Mumbai, Cairo and Manila. Jazeera Airways will initially reopen routes to nine destinations: Istanbul, Beirut, Damascus, Dubai, Cairo, Amman, Kochi, Mumbai and Delhi. Currently, no other airlines have announced the resumption of flights to Kuwait, according to multiple reports.
The report that the prime minister and the president of the United States had a disagreement is not true. The opposite is true.
Across the region, airspace reopenings have been gradual. Hamad International Airport in Doha announced foreign airlines would be allowed to resume operations earlier this week. Flydubai began operating flights on April 21, followed by AirArabia on April 22 and Oman Air, Royal Jordanian, Tarco Aviation and US-Bangla Airlines on April 23. From April 26, Middle East Airlines will resume flights, as will Himalaya Airlines on April 28. Flag carrier Qatar Airways has been operating limited flights since March 7. In the United Arab Emirates, flights restarted on March 2, according to multiple reports.
European carriers including Air France, Lufthansa, KLM and British Airways have all temporarily suspended flights, according to multiple reports. Flag carrier Emirates has resumed nearly 80% of its operations out of Dubai, according to flight tracking website Flightradar24. Saudi Arabia's airspace has remained open throughout the crisis, but many flights have been delayed or cancelled. Earlier this month, Virgin Atlantic announced it was scrapping its route to Riyadh from London, just a year after it launched. Oman's airspace is also open, although there are some cancellations and delays. Following the announcement of a ceasefire, Bahrain, Iraq and Israel reopened their airspace on April 8. Iran partially reopened its airspace on April 18, according to multiple reports.
In the political aftermath, Mojtaba Khamenei was selected as the new supreme leader, according to research from two sources. The ceasefire terms that led to the April 8 airspace reopenings have not been publicly detailed, but the 12-Day War in June 2025 had ended with a US-brokered truce, suggesting a similar framework may have been used.
Several uncertainties remain. The exact number of civilian casualties in the 2026 war has not been confirmed. It is unclear whether the US approved or opposed the killing of Khamenei before the strike, given conflicting reports. The current status of Kuwait's airspace as of the latest reports is open, but the full extent of damage to the airport is still being assessed. The number of targets actually struck by US and Israeli forces is disputed, with Washington and Israel claiming more than 5,000 and Iran alleging nearly 10,000 civilian sites were bombed. The terms of the ceasefire that led to airspace reopenings on April 8 have not been made public.